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Watching the field our tests belong to

A living review of new research on every question we test, how interest and funding are moving across the field, and the institute’s own news and press record. Updated every week.

Five press releases from October 2025 have been withdrawn. What they said, and why.

Living Review

Our predictions are kept under living review. Every week an automated search reads new papers on arXiv and in journals for work that bears on our registered tests. Other groups are testing the same questions, and their results can support, challenge or sharpen ours. Papers are listed as they are found; a relation appears only after one of us has read the paper.

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Working on one of these questions? If your measurements or analysis bear on one of our tests, we would like to compare notes and cite your work. Get in touch →

Around the World

Who Is Researching What

Research and investment in each of our fields, country by country, from OpenAlex: an open index of scholarly work in every language. Specialization shows how strongly a country focuses on a field compared with its research overall, so smaller and non-Western countries that lead a field stand out, not only the largest producers.

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Leading countries

    Share of the world’s papers over time

    By continent

    Funders acknowledged most

      Press

      In the News

      Coverage, announcements, and notable moments from the Ic² Research Institute and The Big TOE framework.

      Dark energy cosmos ⭐ Featured
      April 2024  ·  Consistent Result
      DESI Favors Evolving Dark Energy
      In April 2024 the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument's first-year results favored evolving dark energy at 2.5σ to 3.9σ, and its second release, in March 2025, strengthened the signal. The framework expects evolution, but its written prediction dates from October 2025, so this is a consistent result, not a test.
      Read the Record →
      Quantum computing Prediction
      December 2024
      Google Willow's Error Correction Result Consistent With the Framework
      Google's Willow chip demonstrated exponential error suppression below threshold. The framework accounts for it, though the framework's written version dates from after the result.
      View Validation →
      James Webb Space Telescope Prediction
      2024–2025  ·  JWST
      JWST Finds Massive Early Galaxies
      James Webb observations throughout 2024 and 2025 found more bright, massive early galaxies than models expected, consistent with the framework's account of early structure formation.
      View Validation →
      CMB analysis Research
      2025  ·  Zenodo Publication
      CMB Analysis Published: Geometric Imprints in the Cosmic Microwave Background
      Independent CMB analysis examining potential geometric signatures consistent with the COSMIC Framework, published openly on Zenodo with full data repository.
      View on Zenodo →
      Book Community
      2026  ·  Book Release
      The Big TOE Released on an Honor System
      A Quest for The Big TOE: The COSMIC Framework's Theory of Everything is available at www.eequalsicsquared.com and readers decide what to pay for it.
      Get the Book →
      Research institute Research
      March 2025  ·  DESI DR2
      DESI DR2 Strengthens Dark Energy Signal to as Much as 4.2σ, Consistent with Framework
      The second data release from DESI deepened the statistical case for evolving dark energy, a result the framework is consistent with.
      View Full Analysis →
      "Every prediction is now made first, published openly and tested later, and the record says plainly which results came before it."
      Michael K. Baines, ORCID: 0009-0001-8084-3870

      Conferences & Events

      Where the Work Gets Out

      Independent research needs independent venues. The institute is building a presence in the physics and consciousness science communities.

      December 2026
      International Conference on Applied Quantum and Statistical Physics (ICAQSP)
      📍 Bangkok, Thailand
      Target venue for a first formal presentation of the QMM/substrate dynamics material. Small working conference format; direct conversations with specialists in quantum and statistical physics. Abstract submission target: October 2026.
      Upcoming Target
      2027 (location TBA)
      The Science of Consciousness (TSC)
      📍 Announced at consciousness.arizona.edu
      A leading interdisciplinary forum for consciousness science, neuroscience, quantum physics and philosophy of mind. Directed by Stuart Hameroff. An Asian location in 2027 would make this accessible. The framework's information-substrate approach to consciousness fits the program directly.
      Priority Target
      May 2027
      21st Siam Physics Congress (SPC2027)
      📍 Thailand (venue TBA)
      Thailand's flagship annual physics event, organized by the Thai Physics Society and SLRI. The 2026 edition ran at the Dusit Thani Hua Hin, within easy reach of Bangkok. SPC2027 is a natural local entry point for the Thai physics community. Abstract submission opens approximately January 2027.
      Local Priority

      YouTube Channel

      Video Content

      The Ic² YouTube channel is new and there is nothing on it yet. When there is, it will follow the missions and the instruments that decide them, in the same terms as the rest of this site. Subscribing is the way to get them when they arrive.

      Nothing to watch yet. The channel exists and is empty. Rather than embed a player with nothing in it, this space stays plain until there is a first video, and then it becomes one.

      ▶  Subscribe on YouTube Read the Blog

      Press Resources

      Media Kit

      Everything journalists, bloggers, and collaborators need to cover the institute and the research.

      article
      One-Page Summary
      A concise overview of the COSMIC Framework, the institute's mission, its results and its pre-registered tests, ready for editorial use.
      View Framework →
      fact_check
      Prediction Dossier
      The full prediction record: the date each prediction was first documented and the independent source that will decide it.
      View Validation →
      menu_book
      The Book (Free)
      A Quest for The Big TOE: the full manuscript, available to download on an honor system. 21 elements covering information, gravity, consciousness, and spacetime.
      Get the Book →
      public
      Zenodo Publications
      Peer-accessible research data and papers published openly on Zenodo, including the CMB geometric analysis and supporting datasets.
      View on Zenodo →
      person
      Author Bio
      Michael K. Baines, independent researcher, ORCID 0009-0001-8084-3870. Long-form and short-form bios available for editorial use on request.
      About the Author →
      alternate_email
      Press Contact
      For interview requests, fact-checking, collaboration inquiries, or any media-related questions, reach us directly.
      Contact Us →

      Get in Touch

      Press & Media Inquiries

      headset_mic

      Media Contact

      For interview requests, review copies of the book, or background information on the framework and its predictions, please use the contact details below. Response time is typically within 48 hours.

      Website: www.eequalsicsquared.com

      Email: ic2.info@proton.me

      Research DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.16376121

      ORCID: 0009-0001-8084-3870

      topic

      What We Are Happy to Discuss

      The four consistent results, why they do not count as tests, and the pre-registered predictions that will. The information-first approach to unifying physics. The open publishing model and why independent research matters. The COSMIC Framework's position on dark energy, quantum error correction, and early galaxy formation. Upcoming predictions and how to follow along.

      Support the Research →